After the Reapers
by Amriah
Summary: The Reapers are destroyed. The galaxy is saved, but there's a lot left to do. The majority of the galactic races are stuck in the Sol cluster until the relays are fixed. Garrus never gave up on Shepard and is rewarded when they find her. Still, she's tired and worn down by the heavy costs of the war. Consider this a compilation of Shepard and Garrus's adventures after the Reapers.
1. Shepard Lives

**Author's note: My Femshep was paragon through all three games with red hair, close to the standard look but not quite. None of the squad characters died in ME2 (except half my crew BUT THAT WAS A MISTAKE NOT WORTH MENTIONING). Also I didn't do any of the DLC except the Citadel and Extended Cut (obviously), so no Zaeed, Javik, Kasumi, or anything like that. Sorry.**

**Also I got the destroy perfect ending, where Shepard takes the little breath and Garrus doesn't put her name on the wall. This is what I'm going off of. And yes, I switched up the order of when Garrus does the plaque thing vs when the Normandy takes off because reasons. You'll see. ANYWAY, long story short, I hope you like this.**

**This chapter was written to "I Was Lost Without You" and "An End Once And For All (Extended Cut)." Please listen to those while reading for maximum feels.**

* * *

It had been a two months since the Reapers were destroyed and the galaxy saved thanks to Shepard. Garrus had helped Joker and the others fix up the Normandy within a couple weeks, and they were luckily not far from Sol. The Charon relay had dumped them out someplace nearby, not an uncharted world, but not a useful one either. It took a lot of calibrating without EDI, and Garrus nearly broke both of Joker's legs more than once because of his bitter attitude about that, but the job got done. They all had to get off that worthless rock. After all, the Normandy was missing its commander.

Communications never failed, seeing as the Normandy's quasar system wasn't reliant on the relays, so it wasn't as if they were in the dark. Every night, Garrus went into the vid com room and hailed Admiral Hackett for updates. The human indulged him a little, he realized, which was fine by him. Even if he hadn't, the Council's still held power enough to get him daily Earth intel.

The new Council, located on the Destiny Ascension. The asari ship was docked at Earth until the relays and the Citadel were fixed. But they needed Spectres just as much as the last bunch. Always helped to have a turian with a gun. Everyone in charge was happy to hear the Normandy was heading back, and that the return trip would only take four weeks.

Garrus thought he'd be relieved to go back to Earth, to see Hackett and the Council and help his people figure out the logistics of living in the Sol system until the relays could take them home again. Instead he was impatient, constantly shooting targets when he had some free time in an abandoned hangar of the broken dock the Normandy and other high-level ships were berthed. Day after day and no word. For two weeks. Two months.

He sat in the lounge, staring out at the dusky sky. What was left of the Citadel was a bright light not far from Luna. And there was no gunfire for once. If it stayed like this, Earth wasn't a bad place. He sipped some of his turian brandy. An old conversation with Mordin came to mind, back when they were fighting for Cerberus. The salarian had found him when no one was around and started rambling about his work, saying things Garrus didn't care to figure out or unravel.

"Need to test dexterity of new turian suit design. Don't wish to decrease firing capabilities."

"Sure."

"Oh, and human skin far more sensitive than turian, but interaction not impossible. Careful with carapace. Talons too. Will provide details on comfortable positions," the salarian had said suddenly, throwing Garrus back into the conversation.

"Uh, well…" He had shifted his weight in embarrassment. "Thanks, I guess."

"Of course. Am a doctor, will always give patient advice."

"I'm not your patient."

"Everyone on ship is." Mordin hummed to himself for a moment. "Friend, also patient."

After a moment, Garrus asked, "Do you think it's strange? My relationship with Shepard, I mean."

"Love not bound by amino acids or genetic material. Is complicated, natural bonding impulse. Needs further study. But no, not strange."

Only the stars were out the window then, and one gave the effect of the setting sun on Palavan. Earth's sunset wasn't much different. The memory faded, and he chuckled into his cup as he took another sip.

Not long after, Tali entered the lounge. She came in with her hands behind her back. She was holding something. "Everything okay?" He asked. But he was already guessing for the most likely answers, and preparing for them.

"Hackett called. Traynor thought you were in the hangar."

"And?"

Tali hesitated. "They've declared her missing in action, Garrus." She revealed the plaque. Shepard's name was on it. Like the one they'd hung for Anderson, for Thane, for Mordin, even for Legion. A name written on some metal.

He took it from her and stared at it for a long time.

_There's no Shepard without Vakarian, so you better remember to duck._

"Garrus?" Tali walked up beside him.

_I'll be looking down._

"Garrus?"

_You know I love you. I always will._

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

It was clear she was upset, but he simply stared at the thing in his hands. It had been stupid of him to mess up at a critical moment. If he had been there for her, maybe it would've been different. Or at least they would've died together, shooting Reaper husks and marauders until they had no ammo left. Instead he'd been weak and failed.

"Is everyone here?" He managed to ask. Turian strength was good for a lot of things. Grieving turned to anger and purpose. He would make sure the others got to say their goodbyes. At least he got to say his.

"Yes," Tali said.

"Call them. Let them know."

"Garrus…"

"Thank you," he said, glancing up at her.

"Of course." She wasn't sure if she should leave, that much was clear, but she did. And he was alone again.

* * *

They all gathered around the memorial wall the next morning, Jacob, Miranda, Liara, Tali, Jack, Joker, Kaidan, James. Grunt and Wrex even came, heads bowed. Garrus was impressed, as always, by how many lives Shepard managed to influence. She was a hell of a woman. Not quite as good a shot as him. But he knew she'd missed on purpose, that day on the roof. Didn't know it at the time, but she admitted it later, when Garrus had tired her out enough to take her mind off the war for a while.

He'd always have those memories.

Walking forward, he looked at the plaque, then at the wall. So many lost. He was going to put it up when he hesitated. Prayers, it seemed, were sometimes answered.

"Joker?" Traynor's voice said over the comm. She sounded excited. "I've got a message. Garrus can you hear me?"

"We hear you, Traynor" Garrus said. "Can it wait?"

"No, no it can't. You see, Admiral Hackett couldn't get through, so he pinged me specifically. They found someone alive in the wreckage of London, not far from the tower that had been below the Citadel." She paused, and that pause nearly killed Garrus.

But then she said the words he'd hoped to hear: "It's Commander Shepard."

* * *

No one was allowed into the hospital room she was in except Miranda. That made Garrus nervous. Joker, Kaidan, James, Jacob, Liara, Tali, and everyone else had come with them. They took up the waiting area on one side. Others from the Normandy crew came in and out to see what was going on. The new Councilors came and paid their respects to Garrus and the others as well. It was asking too much for them to apologize for their predecessors. Garrus felt nothing but disgust. Politicians were all the same. He was happy to be out of that bureaucratic hell.

"They'll see to her wounds, Garrus," Liara said with a smile.

"Yeah, and then you two can go back to be annoying in that love nest of a cabin." James crossed his arms.

"You're just jealous," Kaidan replied.

"So are you." Tali laughed when Kaidan stammered a refusal. Others joined in.

Jacob pushed James lightly. "I think it's safe to say most of us are."

"Speak for yourself." Jack scoffed, but she smiled too.

"Thanks, all of you. You're not bad, for a bunch of humans. Mostly." Garrus said.

"Come on, turian." Wrex punched his fists together. "Don't go soft on me now. Well, softer."

"I wouldn't dream of it, Wrex."

The others laughed.

A salarian, nearly black in color, walked out, alongside Admiral Hackett. When Garrus stood up, he turned to him. "I don't know how she survived. The Citadel had no life support functions left. No oxygen, gravity. Nothing. How she ended up back on Earth is a mystery to me, especially two months after the event, but her injuries aren't as bad as the doctor had feared, given the Commander's history."

"No bringing her back from the dead this time, Garrus," Hackett said.

"In any event, she's awake and seeing the doctor. The admiral thought it best if she saw a familiar face first."

"My old mug isn't very reassuring these days," Hackett said with a laugh. He extended his hand, though there was distrust in his eyes. Garrus couldn't blame him, didn't care. He shook the man's hand gladly. "Hell of a woman you've got there."

"Yes, sir. She's one of the best examples of humanity's better attributes."

"On that we can agree."

Hackett stood aside and let the salarian nurse lead him down the hall. The room wasn't exposed. No glass, no easy access points other than through the entrance. If someone tried to come for her, he could protect her this time. After all, what were a few mercenaries or terrorists to Reapers?

The door slid open, and relief washed over him at the sight of her. Breathing, alive, right there, eyes open and processing the world around her with obvious cognition. But she was more than a little injured. Bandages wrapped around most of her face, her arms, her stomach. What skin wasn't bandaged was swollen and bruised a gross yellow and purple.

The doctor, an asari, to his surprise, stood with a data pad in hand at the food of Shepard's bed. "You will have permanent scars where the Lazarus Project initial tissue was already weakened, but that's about it."

"Thank you, doctor," Garrus said as charismatically as possible, though it was all for Shepard's benefit. Look good for the girl, make an entrance. "Looks like we'll have matching scars now, Shepard."

It sounded like she tried to laugh, but it hurt to watch her try. "Glad you made it out."

"And you," he said softly. "They almost counted you out for a moment there."

"So did I."

"But I didn't. Clearly the commanding officer forgot her uplifting speeches in the middle of it all."

"You mean in the middle of the Illusive Man trying to indoctrinate me, Anderson dying, and the AI kid that made the Reapers giving me three choices that didn't really look all that different from one another?" She laid her head back against the pillow and looked up.

"Wow."

"Don't ever ask me to save the galaxy again, Garrus," she said wearily. "That's a direct order."

"Yes, ma'am. May I suggest finding a relaxing beach instead? Earth still has those. Unfortunately your apartment on the Citadel was short-lived."

"The explosive glass probably helped seal the deal."

"I think the Reapers were more to blame." Garrus brought a chair over and sat down next to her, taking up her hand as gently as possible.

"I don't know how I lived through that," she admitted.

"To be honest, Shepard, I don't care how it happened, I'm just glad you made it out of there in one piece."

"Me too."

Her words were hollow and heavy, and Garrus knew she held the weight of her choices around her neck. But he'd help ease her back into the world again. After all, they were together. Nothing could stop them.


	2. EDI

**Author's note: Since there's really not a whole lot of information on the Catalyst, I took some liberties here.**

**For maximum feels, listen to "I Am Alive And I Am Not Alone," from the Mass Effect 3 Extended Cut soundtrack.**

* * *

The little boy wasn't in Shepard's dreams this time, and she wasn't hearing whispers or running through a forest. It was calm, almost too serene. She was standing in the Catalyst's room, looking out at Earth as the sun's glow peaked over the edge of her beautiful world. Anderson and the Illusive Man weren't there. There were no choices to make anymore. She'd already been swallowed by flames, knowing the destruction it would bring to the Reapers. And to all synthetic life.

The geth. EDI.

Why wasn't she dead?

"You made a choice," the Catalyst said, in its dual child-and-man tone. "It was the only solution wherein I could save you. And I will."

White light encapsulated her. She knew, somehow, that the Catalyst used what little energy it had left to protect her while the world sifted through the damage done by its flames. He — it — held no love or hatred for the Reapers in his thoughts. He felt no love or hatred for her, either, and even felt compelled to guard her despite the destruction she'd caused by her actions, or really her lack of choices. What kind of being destroyed galaxies then used its last moments to save a single person?

She felt herself being pulled towards Earth. Time was irrelevant, until the light faded and she gasped for air among the rubble.

* * *

Waking up with a start when most of your body was so broken that it hurt just to twitch stung like hell. She winced.

"Bad dream?" Garrus asked a moment later. He hadn't left the room for very long since she woke up, and she couldn't complain, but there was something missing. Her heart ached, as if someone had removed a piece of it and left a chunk of space instead.

"Has Joker been in?"

Garrus sighed. "It might be best to have that conversation when both of you aren't so breakable."

"Bring him in."

"Shepard—"

"Now."

"All right," he said softly. "But don't play the martyr, Shepard. You're just not the type."

"Funny, everyone seems to think I am."

"Well you're not. You're the one that knocks some sense into the martyr so the guy can win his own fights. Remember that."

After a moment, she said, "Some fights aren't winnable."

"You beat the Reapers."

"It feels like they beat me, Garrus." She sighed carefully. "Now quit stalling and bring Joker in."

The turian reluctantly left. A few minutes later, Joker staggered in with that usual uneven gait of his. "Commander. Glad to see you didn't get spaced again." His tone was nothing like the lighthearted, sarcastic ass that was her pilot. It had venom in it, bitter and sad.

"How are you holding up?" She asked. Even to herself, she sounded exhausted.

"Oh, you know. Cautiously with every step."

There was no easy way to breach the subject, so she decided to get it out quickly. "I'm sorry about EDI."

Joker nodded his head, lips pursed, and his eyes became watery. "No, it's fine. I mean, she understood in the end, a few seconds before the blast hit us. She said goodbye, and to tell you thanks for helping her feel truly alive."

"I didn't want her to die."

"Never crossed my mind, but you know. It's convenient you get to stick around with Garrus," he spat out the name with so much sarcasm, "and I get a quiet ship again."

"A VI…"

"Will never come close to EDI."

Shepard looked up at the ceiling. "The other outcomes, the ones where she'd live, weren't good enough. I'm sorry, but I did what I had to do."

"One day I'll be able to get that, Commander. That's just not today." He shook his head. "I have to go. Garrus gave me a ten minute limit. Wouldn't want your boyfriend breaking my legs."

It was a relief to hear some brevity in his tone that time. Not much, but it was something. "See you around."

"Not for a while. You're more fragile than I am." He gave a nod and walked out the door.

Shepard tried to rub her temples, but it hurt too much to raise her hand that high. So she stared at the ceiling some more. Her choices were shit. All of them had repercussions, and it would've taken a lot of time for her to wrap her head around them. Destroying the Reapers was the only option that made sense, the only one that didn't stink of indoctrination or a change she didn't feel the galaxy was ready for. And she had to make that choice without any input for others.

Would EDI have agreed to the synthesis of organic and synthetic life? She had understood why Shepard did what she did, in the end. Normally that was enough for her.

This time it wasn't. Because on top of EDI's death, she was also responsible for the destruction of an entire species. The geth. Tali had mentioned in an offhand comment that even the quarians were sad that the geth were gone. She had immediately apologized, but Shepard knew, at least partially, that Tali didn't understand why her choice had been to wipe out _all_ synthetic life and not just the Reapers.

Soon the whole galaxy would know. Her debriefing with the Council and Admiral Hackett was in a week. She only hoped they could understand how limited her options really were.


	3. A New Council

**Author's note: in this version the original Council was kept alive the entire time, so their in-game backups are their successors in this story, at least for the salarian and turian Councilors. Also this chapter was longer than I expected.**

* * *

It was good to be back on the Normandy, even if it was to say goodbye to her for a while. She was given a whole month's mandatory shore leave after the meeting with the Council.

Shepard walked into the CIC from the elevator. Her left leg was still messed up, giving her a pronounced limp that would go away within the year, the doctor promised, but the rest of her worked well enough now. There was no reason to bother with the scars on both sides of her cheeks, in the same places as they used to be back when she was first woken up, back when she briefly worked for Cerberus.

They'd heal up eventually. She might even keep one or two of them.

As she walked to the galaxy map, which was locked, everyone went about their work, but there were less people. Traynor wasn't in her usual spot.

No one was.

She had a token crew, old friends who refused to leave until other duties forced them to. And Shepard knew most of her people would move on. Given the fact that the majority of the Council races involved in the Battle for Earth, on top of mercenaries and embassy species, were stranded in Sol for the time being, her crew had experience that primed them for command positions.

After all the near-death experiences, the firefights, and unknowns they charged into so many times in the Reaper war, they earned it.

Primarch Victus met her at the door to the war room. He dipped his head in respectful greeting. "Commander Shepard. I was pleased to hear the rumors of your death were exaggerated. Again." His mandibles opened slightly, the turian equivalent of amusement. She'd gotten better at reading their expressions, thanks to Garrus.

"Glad to see you came out alive too, Primarch. The galaxy still needs you."

He folded his hands behind his back. "Yes. There's a lot of rebuilding left to do."

"How's work on the relays coming along?" She asked as they walked towards the war room, probably for the last time.

"It's slow, but will gain momentum within the following months. The Crucible scientists are helping to rebuild the useful synthetics we need to repair the relays faster. They're the galaxy's best and brightest. What's left of them, at least." The pain in his words was clearly not for scientists.

Shepard closed her eyes and clenched her jaw. "I'm sorry, Primarch. I know you lost a lot of good men."

"Hundreds of millions between Palavan and Earth. Nearly a billion, if you count civilian casualties. But if there's one thing you've taught me, Commander, it's that I have to look at the larger scope of the field. The asari are still recovering, the salarians are in a state of flux from losing their entire chain of command, and the humans lost the most out of all of us in terms of civilian numbers. So yes, we lost a lot of good men. But so did the rest of the galaxy, and it is strangely comforting to know we're all suffering in unity." He scoffed, mandibles moving. "I never thought I'd say that."

"War changes all of us, sir."

"This is not a bad change. I only wish the cost wasn't so high."

She smiled sadly before turning the corner to the war room. Admiral Hackett stood at the front of the old, familiar construct at the center of the room.

"Commander Shepard." He nodded towards the Primarch, who left to join the other races behind Hackett, one at each console. "It's good to see you on your feet."

"Thank you, sir."

"I don't think we've met," the salarian dalatrass, standing to Shepard's left, said. "I'm Councilor Escheel."

"And I am Councilor Quentlus," the turian on Shepard's right added.

Hackett stepped aside so that she could stand before the others. "I believe you're acquainted with Acting Councilor Liara T'soni and Councilor Eve."

"The krogan have a seat now?"

"After all the fighting we did, we'd better get some recognition," Eve said, with strength and without sarcasm.

"You'd think the genophage cure would be enough," the dalatrass replied. She crossed her arms as Eve scowled at her.

"This should be interesting," Shepard mumbled. "I'm happy Wrex picked you, Eve, and not himself."

Eve laughed. "He is still a male. It will take some time for them to learn not to headbutt first and resort to diplomacy last."

Shepard couldn't see Wrex ever being more diplomatic than he already was — and he was very diplomatic for a krogan. She turned to Liara. "I didn't realize you had an interest in politics."

Liara bowed her head slightly. "I-I am only taking up this position until another more worthy can be chosen."

"How are the asari doing?"

"Better than I'd hoped, but there is still much work to do. We've… Thessia has never been attacked by an enemy so hard or so directly for millennia. It's a difficult adjustment, seeing so many of our own perish."

"Their chain of command has no idea what to do when it's been hit," Quentlus remarked dryly. His arms were also crossed.

Liara didn't reply, but her frown made it apparent that if it were up to her, the Shadow Broker would suddenly find a way to make Quentlus stop breathing.

"I assume we didn't come here to fight." Shepard's tone demanded their attention, and the others turned to her. Good. At least she could cut the political squabbling out before it drove her nuts.

Hackett stepped forward. "Since you were the only one on the Catalyst at the end of it all, I think it's time you gave us a full debriefing."

So she did. The Illusive Man's desperation for control, Anderson's death, the Catalyst's choices, and her decision to destroy all synthetic life so that the Reapers would never win. No one asked questions while she spoke. In fact they seemed to dissect her every word, and she knew they had the power to punish or reward her.

Hackett was the first to break the silence when she was done. "I'd like to remind everyone that we were in an impossible situation, and now we're not thanks to Shepard."

"There's no need to defend your soldier, Admiral," Quentlus said. "I agree with her actions."

"Militaristc minds think alike," Eve remarked. "While I don't think logic was used in your decision, Commander, I can't say I enjoy the paths the other two choices lead towards."

"And why not?" the dalatrass asked. "Controlling the Reapers would've brought about more technological prosperity and a solid defense force for all races. We would never have to repeat this travesty again."

"You don't know that," Liara replied. "None of us can know that."

"It also leaves us vulnerable to an immortal Shepard's whims. No offense, Commander," Quentlus said. "I respect what you did for this galaxy, but you wouldn't be the same person. And merging synthetic life with organic is out of the question."

"I agree. We aren't ready for that, no matter what the Catalyst said," Hackett added.

"Let's not forget we sent Shepard in to use a weapon we didn't know would work, much less how or at what cost. We were desperate." Liara looked at Shepard.

"Your loyalty to your former commanding officer is noted, Acting Councilor." The dalatrass tossed Liara a snide scowl. Then again, the dalatrass never stopped scowling. She turned to the other Councilors, who nodded. "In light of the scars left on this galaxy that need mending and the good soldiers already lost, it would be a waste to administer punishment to you, Commander Shepard. You are to be honored instead."

"You may request a statue be commissioned on the Citadel in your likeness, once it is repaired." Liara smiled.

Councilor Quentlus came forward and extended his hand. "On behalf of all the galaxy, thank you for all you've done, all you've been willing to sacrifice."

She shook his hand with a grin, though she didn't feel as happy or relieved as she expected. "Thank you, Councilor. I hope your people can move on from this in peace. All of you," she said to the rest of the Council, to Victus and Hackett.

"Thank you," Quentlus replied. "Hell of a ship you've got, by the way."

"I suppose I should thank your people for that, too." She put her hand on the console. "She's the best ship any girl could ask for."

"We can do a lot if we put our differences aside."

"It's never that simple," the dalatrass said. "Commander, thank you for your honesty, and your bravery. You're dismissed."

"Ma'am."

"Enjoy your shore leave, Commander," Hackett said to her as the Council started talking about other things. "Try not to get into any firefights."

"I can't make that promise, sir. People just like shooting at me."

"Maybe that will lessen now."

"Somehow I doubt it. The guns will just be normal again, which is nice."

Hackett laughed for a moment, then grew serious. "I never did get to say this earlier, but I'm sorry about Anderson. He was a good man."

"The best."

"Yes. He was." Hackett put a hand on her shoulder. After a few moments, since there was nothing left to say, he said, "Don't get too comfortable on this vacation. We still need you."

"I know."

Shepard went up to her cabin. The fish were still there. Garrus had been feeding them while they were making repairs to return to Earth, and Traynor promised she'd get someone to feed them before she left on assignment to another lab. The specialist promised she'd come back if Shepard ever asked. That was compliment enough.

Her models were packed away. She wasn't surprised to see Garrus sitting at the table, scanning a data pad with interest, since she'd asked him to wait there.

"I guess the meeting went well, if you weren't courtmartialed or imprisoned." His mandibles moved in amusement, though it took him a moment to put the data pad down. There was still a lot to be done.

"You don't have to come with me, you know. At least not for the full month."

"And let you have all the fun?" He stood up and wrapped his arms around her waist, drawing her close. "Nice try. Besides, you and I both know you can't go anywhere without trouble following."

She rested her forehead against his. His skin was rough and familiar. "Well I can think of a few things that need calibrating. Might take some reach."

The flanging in his voice increased as she ran her fingers along his left mandible. "Promises, promises."


	4. I Was Lost Without You

**Author's note: I put a lot of thought into how Garrus and Shepard, you know, test out their reach and flexibility. This is my version. I know others have Garrus act more primal, and have more biting involved but I didn't see it that way. Plus this isn't M-rated. So yeah. Hope you like it. For maximum feels, listen to "I Was Lost Without You" from the Mass Effect 3 soundtrack. Love interest music for the win.**

* * *

Garrus wouldn't let her drive the car to her new house, but they didn't go that far away from Alliance HQ in London. As Hackett promised, it was by the beach. A cold, overcast beach with craters and debris scattered all over the shoreline. Still, there were no Reapers, aside from the dead carcasses in the distance, nothing to shoot at unless she set up markers in a line, and no one asking her to save the galaxy. The pressure was gone. Only an emptiness remained.

The house itself was one of the few left intact in the neighborhood, which was mostly abandoned. Some other soldiers were taking shore leave farther down, judging from the music and the occasional shouting. Once she stepped inside though, she could almost believe nothing was wrong. The place was clean, tidy. The furniture was simple, the decor pleasant, the kitchen stocked and the bar full of various bottles and glasses.

"It's smaller than the place on the Citadel, but they were nice enough to stock it with turian food. And drinks." Garrus put the box with her models on the counter. He was wearing casual clothes, a black jacket with blue sleeves covered his carapace, and silver metal plating went up the front of the suit where his crest was. For once he left the scanner off his face, too.

Of course, when she went to open a kitchen drawer, she found a pistol. She lifted it up and showed it to him with a raised eyebrow. "Anything else I should know about?"

He chuckled, not even the least bit apologetically. "Don't go for casual strolls on the beach without turning on the hall light. Or out to the patio without pressing a release lever at the top of the glass door. But I was going to run you through all that after."

"After what?" She grinned and put the pistol back in its place.

"Oh, I don't know." He tried to play bad boy with his tone, but it wavered. He pulled her close and gently touched his forehead to hers. "I thought you were dead."

"Hey, we've been through some crazy things and come out on the other side." She caressed the side of his mandible, the unscarred one.

His skin was rough against her fingers, like rubbing old leather, but it didn't matter. She didn't like him, or sleep with him, for his looks. Or his species, though all of that grew on her over time. He was just Garrus, the only one that ever made her feel normal outside of the romance, the one that didn't stand in awe of her and instead stood _with_ her. There was no Shepard without Vakarian. And she needed to hold onto that now more than ever, given how discomforting her thoughts were on an almost constant basis now.

"Sure, and I was there for most of it, fighting with you, but —"

"You were with me in that fight, Garrus."

"I should've been with you until the end. I always had your back. You trusted me with that, and I failed at a critical moment. Even slowed you down because you had to get the Normandy to fly us out of there. For all my expertise, you'd think I'd know how to duck and dodge."

"I thought turians didn't know how to duck."

He chuckled, though there was a hint of frustration. "Still. It was the worst feeling in the world, watching you move on with the mission, leaving me behind."

"And do you know how motivated I was, knowing you'd live even if I didn't?" Her hand wandered to his neck, to the sensitive skin free from the faceplates at the collar of his clothes. Turians had talons, not soft fingertips, and Garrus enjoyed the stimulation it caused when she touched his actual skin.

A hunger replaced the conflict in his demeanor, and he moved her towards the stairs, hands pressing her hips to his. "You are very motivating."

"You have no idea," she whispered as she led him to the bedroom.

* * *

Garrus was always surprised by how much he enjoyed Shepard's touch, her body against his skin, and by how beautiful she was, despite the strangeness of her. Even though he always had to go out of his way to avoid hurting her — with his carapace or his crest in certain positions, his talons or his claws when he got too into the moment, or even his spurs and teeth — she made it worth the effort, and he never regretted it.

Humans were so flimsy, but passionate in ways turians weren't.

Then again, that might've just been Shepard. She held nothing back, ever, and he couldn't imagine her doing anything less. Besides, it always brought the best out of him. Out of everyone. Though not in bed. That was his battleground only. He looked at her and stroked her arm the way she liked with the back of his finger.

She groaned in discomfort in her sleep and curled up closer to his chest, her head just below his crest. She trusted him with this level of vulnerability. It was humbling and endearing.

After all this time, her dreams only grew worse. He'd grown accustomed to her twitches and sudden movements in the night, but he wasn't sure what to do about them. Turians didn't have the same emotional responses, and if they did, they'd pull it together for the good of their society.

Humans valued more personal identification. Shepard put the weight of the world on her shoulders, instead of on everyone around her as well.

It was frustrating.

She'd brought him back from the edge twice, with Saleon and then Sidonis, taught him a lot, helped him grow into the turian he always wanted to be, a turian that made his father proud and his people better.

But he still couldn't figure out how to fix her problems, much less how to breach the subject.

Someone like Liara would know. Asari were so intuitive, but Garrus would have to figure it out the hard way. More vids, asking vague questions to Joker, Traynor, and the other humans. Maybe he'd talk to Tali about it. She'd understand both sides.

In the meantime, he stroked Shepard's back, her shoulders, pecked gently at her cheek. Things she enjoyed him doing, things that made her groaning and sudden twitches less violent for a while. Yeah, he'd figure it out. They had tomorrow, and the day after. He'd get her mind off it, even if he had to take her shooting all day to do it. Or make her put that flexibility to good use some more.


	5. It's Not Normal Without Bullets

**Author's note: Kinda toeing the line with that M rating with this one. Still, it was fun. Again, this is my interpretation of a) how Garrus is romantically and b) how turians are when it comes to, erm, anatomy. I went into a little more detail here and there just to highlight the differences between normal human relationships and this lovely cross-species liaison. Enjoy!**

* * *

Shepard woke up early to find Garrus still in bed with her. Surprisingly, he was deep asleep, arm carefully wrapped underneath her pillow so his dulled — but still problematic — talons were facing away from her skin. He never got dead arm from this position, and given turian's skin plating it made sense.

That plating was… interesting. An adjustment, to say the least, from other human affairs she'd had. But he had sensitive skin in between the metallic sections, and they were beyond fun for him, the way it tingled when a man kissed a woman's neck.

It took some exploring to figure these weaknesses of his out, but now she almost had it down to a science. She smiled at the thought and decided to surprise him. After all, she had the advantage of being awake first. It wasn't in her to let a good opportunity go to waste.

She wiggled her head above his crest and shifted most of her weight to rest her chest on the left side of it, careful of his leg spurs with her movements as she wrapped her calf around his left leg. Turians liked to rub leg spurs during as a sort of teasing, from what Garrus had explained, and this was the closest she could get. It worked.

Lips kissed collarbone skin above the plated rim that connected crest to carapace, hands running down to his upper hip to caress the free skin there.

He chuckled, eyes still closed, and lifted his neck. "Good morning," he said with more than a little intrigue in his tone.

His arms wrapped around her back. Though his grip was considerate, always aware of her fragility compared to other turians, his touch was firm and sure. It had that typical Garrus intensity that always made her heart race.

She kissed up to his throat in response.

"Have I mentioned," he groaned, "how much I've come to like these lips of yours?"

It was fun to hear the flanging in his voice as it rumbled. "You know how to make a girl blush."

"Never thought that skill would come in handy."

"What, the turian bad boy never considered a little cross-species liaison with a human before this?" She looked up at him with a devilish grin. Her hands were still moving at his hips.

"Not even a little." He was practically panting. "But I think anyone would consider breaking traditions for you, Shepard. Hell, most of the galaxy _did_."

"I'm impressed," she said mischievously.

"No you aren't. Not yet." And he rolled her onto her back in an almost cliche, romantic fashion. It worked.

At least it would've, if it weren't for the sudden burst of gunfire in the distance. Garrus sighed in frustration and didn't move off of her at first. "It hasn't even been one day."

"Oh, come on Garrus." She pushed him gently so he'd roll over and kissed the skin near his collarbone one last time. "This is our normal."

"Sure, it never hurts to keep up the vigilante skills," he held onto her for a moment before letting her get out of bed, "but their timing could be better."

Another burst of gunfire, followed by a scream, made them pick up the pace when getting dressed. Shepard hadn't packed her combat gear for shore leave, so she threw some of Garrus's spare chest armor underneath her N7 hoodie and hoped the shooting was something simple to fix. She also made a mental note to never leave her gear behind again. Her normal was, after all, riddled with bullets.

"I know you like to take point, but stay behind me." Garrus's armor unfolded and fitted his bodysuit perfectly.

She frowned. "Fine. But I get to press any buttons."

Garrus shook his head, mandibles moving in amusement. Or frustration. Sometimes it was hard to tell. "Let's just hope this isn't as complicated as the last shore leave incident. We don't have the whole crew with us this time."

"We'll be fine," she said in a mockingly confident way. She followed him downstairs and grabbed the pistol from the kitchen drawer, along with a few spare mags. "This is Earth, not the Citadel."

"Humans aren't any less prone to shooting each other, Shepard."

"Yeah, but we're definitely easier to kill compared to a krogan or one of you turians."

Garrus laughed once and shook his head. "Nobody ever told you that. Though I suppose I can't complain." He pressed his mouth to hers. Even if he couldn't mimic the exact human kissing motions — and he came close enough as far as she was concerned — the fact that he tried was solely because the vids Joker had given him had said she'd find it romantic, which made it irresistibly cute. "Come on, let's get this over with so we can get back to what we were doing."

"Garrus Vakarian, more interested in staying in bed than shooting something."

"Well, you make that an easy decision." He appraised her, mandibles flaring. "Damn."

More gunfire put them on the move. The houses were mostly intact until they made it two blocks away. These structures were shells of the places they used to be before Reapers cast Earth into hell. She didn't dwell on it. There wasn't a point to that. And yet a part of her ached more than it used to. It wasn't like she'd made questionable or tough decisions in the past. What made the Reaper war such a heavier burden?

She'd have to answer that later.

An asari cringed in the corner of the next house, trembling. She wore only a bra and underwear. A dancer, then. Entertainment for a night of some serious partying. She motioned for Garrus to keep an eye out while she ducked down next to the purple woman.

"Are you okay?" She asked.

The woman looked visibly relieved to see her. "Y-you're —"

"Commander Shepard, Alliance Navy. What's going on here?"

"Shepard!" Garrus nodded towards the street.

A black and yellow krogan was chasing a few human soldiers. Alliance from the look of them. One shot at it, but the krogan didn't seem to care. Great. A krogan on a bloodrage was the last thing she needed right now.

"Hey, you idiots!" Shepard made swiping motions with her arms. "Get the hell out of here before I make sure you all get posthumously courtmartialed." Then she turned back to the asari. "Stay low and run after we grab his attention."

The woman didn't wait, bolting instead with the soldiers. The krogan didn't follow. He was too busy sizing up Garrus and Shepard, who walked out in front of him.

"Are you with Urdnot Wrex?" Shepard demanded.

"No. Clan Bloodstone."

"Never heard of you," Garrus replied in that bad boy way.

It was Shepard's turn to follow up. "Surrender yourself to the Alliance and you don't have to die."

The krogan laughed. "I'll gut you first, you little female pyjak."

"You might want to reconsider," Garrus said casually. "Commander Shepard did beat the Reapers and come out of it alive. A little krogan won't even matter."

"Bah! She's too puny to be Commander Shepard."

Shepard exchanged a glance with Garrus before shrugging. "We did ask nicely."

"And I'm in the mood for human blood." He called out and two more krogan came out of hiding. "Kill the turian first!"

"So much for newfound turian-krogan friendships," Garrus said through the comm as he went for cover on the opposite side of the street.

The krogan started shooting.

"Come on, Garrus, you knew it wouldn't be that simple."

"Yeah, but these guys seem to really have it out for me." He grunted after taking a shot with his sniper rifle. After another shot, one of the krogan lackeys didn't get up.

"Maybe it's the scars." She fired a few rounds at the black and yellow krogan.

"I do remember mentioning only a krogan female would like them. Must be awful not getting newly fertile females because of a turian." He laughed. "Headshot!" The second lackey collapsed to the street.

During a lull in the firing, Shepard poked her head out. "Come on, you sure you wanna join your pals in the dirt?" she yelled.

"Hey, Commander?" Joker's voice came through her comm. "Everything okay? I'm getting reports of shots fired near your area."

"Everything's under control, just a couple angry krogan." She fired a few rounds for good measure.

"Yeesh. Shore leave's going that good, huh?" Even though his attitude was the same, there was a rigidness to his jokes that made her miss the old Joker. And EDI, since she usually made an awkwardly witty comment at this point in the conversation.

"I'll take this over Reaper scum any day," Garrus said.

"Just go beat it with that good ol' turian stick, Garrus," Joker said. "You're good at that."

"I'd rather just use your legs."

"Aw, I miss you too, buddy. Relaying incident report to Alliance London police." He paused. "Want me to send Tali to you? She's nearby for a quarian thing. Admiral duty or whatever. Representing the Normandy as always."

"No need." Shepard stood up and shot directly at the krogan's chest repeatedly, walking towards it until she ran out of ammo. The krogan charged, but a sniper round went clear through his head. Garrus put his sniper rifle away as she said, "Just send a clean-up crew so I can get back to my vacation."

"Yes ma'am."

Garrus chuckled and strolled over to her. "I love it when you let me get the last shot off."

She laughed as he dipped her and kissed her — or what she considered to be a kiss nowadays — all romantic-like. "So. About that bed."

"If we hurry, we can avoid the paperwork for this mess. And I've been thinking about trying out a few new things."

"Oh?"

"Guys, you can turn off comms now," Joker said as Garrus led her back towards their house, whispering ideas that definitely made her blush. "Please."


	6. The Normandy Crew Goes to the Beach

**Author's note: holy crap this turned into something monstrously long. But this is kind of my version of the Citadel DLC, just beach and post ME3. All happy and stuff. Hope you like it.**

* * *

Shepard didn't want to get up when someone knocked on their front door. She wore only Garrus's jacket, which didn't cover much but hadn't come off last night during their little roleplaying reversal fun. The rest of his clothes had, though, and she'd never forgive him for lording that "I should go" ridiculousness over her. Not that she didn't abuse his misuse of calibrating, but still. It was basically insubordination. Right? He was under her — well, okay, more often than not she was under him — when he was aboard the Normandy. But Spectres were all equal. Darn.

"If you leave Tali out there too long, you know she'll shotgun her way in," Garrus said. He hadn't moved either, laying on his back as always. It seemed like this shore leave made them unwilling to do anything at a fast pace. She liked it. For now. Both of them knew this wasn't permanent, so they were soaking it all in as much as they could.

There hadn't been any other incidents in the past week. Hopefully her aliens friends wouldn't drown and become the second.

They were going swimming today.

When Shepard opened the door, Tali tilted her head in what she'd associated with the quarian equivalent of a stupidly wide grin. "Good morning. I'm ready to brave your Earth waters, Shepard."

And so she was. She had a towel in one hand, umbrella in the other. And her helmet was different. The fixture that blinked resembled a snorkel. It even came up to the side the same way. "What's with the umbrella?"

"Oh, Joker and James said it was proper swimming custom to greet the host with one."

"They did, huh?" She smiled and shook her head, standing to the side. "Come on. Let me change and show you how to use that thing."

It was a rare, sunny day too, so she was actually grateful Vega and that idiot pilot of hers decided to, well, be themselves. She noticed the welcome mat was customizable and put it up against the door with the words "Party's in the Back, Better Not Shoot Anything" in large font.

"I was under the impression human swimwear was… less covering than that," Tali said when Shepard finished with the sign.

"Yeah, it is. Not sure if I want to do that, though."

"Shepard," Tali's voice was so classically sarcastic, "if I went out of my way to modify my suit for this, you're going to go out of your way to at least satisfy my curiosity about human clothing."

"You mean you've never seen a stripper before?" Garrus walked downstairs in his normal clothes. "Nice helmet. Are they the latest quarian fashion?"

"I will kill you, you know."

"I didn't realize that thing coming off the side of your face was a weapon."

Tali glared at him, which was basically a moment of silence and a lack of expression from either side. Somehow that amounted to a glare. She sighed. Aliens and their lack of facial movement — or visibility, in Tali's case.

"Come on, you. Outside." She motioned towards the beach that was their backyard before turning to Garrus. "Is that what you're going to wear?"

"Turians don't swim." He shifted his weight and his voice was uncomfortable.

"There's a first. Maybe all the near-death experiences are catching up to your nerve."

Oh, if turians could frown, he would be scowling. "Shepard, there are easier ways to break up than by drowning me."

"I could just go ask Vega to go snorkeling near my — "

He grabbed her wrist and pulled her to him, so close that she became very aware of his every little twitch. Something about he held her made her want to go upstairs and forget all about swimming. What was worse, he knew it. "Fine, Shepard," he said seductively. "You win."

"Don't worry," she patted him on the shoulder, "we both lost on this one. Bathing suits aren't my favorite either."

"Why, are they too protective for a human?"

She raised an eyebrow. "You… don't think what Tali's wearing is what actual humans put on, do you?"

"Well, no, not the helmet at least," he said this so matter-of-factly that Shepard had to hold back a smile.

"Uh-huh."

"Hello?" Kaidan's scratchy voice broke the moment as he walked through the back porch door. He wore only black swim trunks, and he looked good in them.

"Perfect timing," she said to Garrus with a wry smile.

"Hey, Commander. Nice," he looked her up and down in confusion, "bathing suit?"

"Not quite. I'm going to ask you for a favor, Major." She pointed upstairs. "Help that turian find some swimwear?"

He laughed. "Not the favor I was expecting, but sure. This should be interesting."

"To say the least. Give me a second before heading up there, okay?" She winked at Garrus.

"Wow," she heard Kaidan say, though it was muffled. "She's really something."

"Yeah."

"Glad she made it through all the chaos in one piece, too."

It was hard to make out what Garrus said in response, so she gathered her swimwear and changed quickly, putting on her N7 hoodie after.

"How do you two… I mean. Well, you know."

"Kaidan, I don't think you really want to know that."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

There was a pause. "There is quite a bit of tongue involved though."

"You know what, let's just change the subject."

Men. Regardless of their species, dick contests were universal. Still, she enjoyed Garrus's little reminders that they were a couple, and it was flattering that Alenko was clearly still infatuated with her. Maybe she should've put some pants on. Then again, why not enjoy the attention for once?

"Anybody in here?" Miranda's voice.

"Where the hell is Shepard?" Jack asked. "I had to get a ride with cheerleader over here because her twice-dead ass couldn't answer a call."

"You're the one that totaled your car last time you had a free day off. Can you blame them for not wanting to let you use another?"

"Whatever."

"You two look good," Kaidan said.

Garrus made an awkward noise, like he was clearing his throat or something. "Is this normal human swimwear?"

"Yep," Jack said. "What's the matter, Garrus? Are we too ugly for you?"

"I, uh. No. It's nothing."

Shepard figured that was a good time to break into the conversation. And to hell with the hoodie. She unzipped it and decided to walk down with all the confidence she could muster.

"Damn," Kaidan mumbled when he saw her.

The bottoms were more like short-shorts than the bikini Miranda wore, and the top wrapped around her neck like a halter, with the tiniest string tying it all together on her back. There were more than a few scars on display because of this, especially the ones on her stomach and back, but everyone stared at her regardless. It felt odd being so vulnerable outside of her bedroom. Even a dress was better.

"Shit, Shepard." Jack wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "You put my flat chest to shame."

"You look lovely," Miranda added.

"Definitely," Kaidan said awkwardly.

Garrus just stared at her, and she recognized the desire in his tone as he mumbled, "Mmm."

"Thanks. Come on, let's get out there. I don't think Tali ever figured out that umbrella."

Shepard went outside first, but Jack wasn't far behind. She wore a black bikini with studs. Very punk, which was impossible to avoid with Jack. Miranda wore a white and black bikini with similar styling to her normal suit, and Kaidan and she were talking about what she had been up to for the last two months. She could tell Miranda was giving him the basic rundown, and she caught her eye long enough to know that Miranda was holding a lot back. Tali was cursing at the umbrella while Jack ran up to laugh at her for it. Garrus walked back upstairs after Kaidan said something to him. She wanted to follow him, but Tali called out to her.

"Your umbrellas are bosht'ets, Shepard."

"You just gotta love on them a little, girl," Jack said sarcastically. "Or, you know," she blasted a hole in the sand with her biotics, "give it a good shove."

"Thank you, Jack," Tali replied without inflection, "what would I do without you? And you, you-you." She walked up to Joker and Vega, who had just walked down from the house. "You're lucky you're breakable," she said to Joker. Then, to Vega, "And you're just. Just. Too big in the arms."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Vega replied, flexing his muscles as he arrogantly strutted to Tali, stopping when his nose practically touched her mask. "You know you like it."

"Do you ever stop flirting?" Shepard asked him with a smile, arms crossed.

"Shepard?" He laughed in disbelief and strolled up to her, getting pretty close, though not as much as he did with Tali. "Damn, Lola, you're looking good."

"Nice flowers." She motioned to his Hawaiin style swim trunks.

"Yeah, I figured since you're no fun with your vacation destinations that I'd bring a little of the tropical party to you."

"How considerate," Miranda said.

"You're welcome." He winked.

"Can somebody please kill him?" Tali demanded.

"Now you're talking." Jack glowed blue and chased Vega around until she picked him up with her biotics and hurled him into the ocean. He landed with an unattractive _splash_. Everyone laughed long and hard, even Shepard. Honest laughter, too.

Joker wore trunks and a surfing shirt. He didn't look bad, though his legs were clearly warped in places. His gimp made these spots more apparent.

After giving Shepard a little nod, he hobbled over to the spread-out towel under the now upright umbrella. The others were all laughing and joking with one another while Jack kept dunking Vega in the water, so she sat down next to him.

"Hey, Commander." After a while, he said, "Sorry about my attitude at the hospital."

"Don't be. You didn't tell me anything I hadn't already told myself."

"Yeah, I figured. You take too much on, you know."

"You've been talking to Garrus, haven't you?"

"He might've mentioned a few things."

"I'm fine."

"With all do respect Commander, that's bullshit. I know a broken soldier when I see one. You smile for them, but your eyes don't smile with you."

She wrapped her arms around her knees, leaning forward to get a better view of Joker's expression. "Sounds like you've got some experience."

"I was born broken, Commander. Took a lot to learn to live with it. So yeah, I do." He looked at her. "You do look good in that though."

"Thanks."

"Got a lot of scars though."

"All part of the job."

They stared out at the ocean for a while. "Engineer Adams and Tali think there might be a way to revive EDI."

"What?" That made her uneasy. "How?"

"Remember when she mentioned that the Normandy was like her body? The ship is her heart. It's still beating, Commander. There's bits of her left. It'll take some work, but they're optimistic."

"Can it be used to bring back the Reapers?"

Joker shook his head. "We turned their hearts off, too. EDI's situation is different, since so much of her was tied up into the Normandy."

"And what about the geth?"

"You'll have to ask Tali about that, but it doesn't look good. I just thought you'd want to know. About EDI."

Relief made her suddenly tired. "She'll make it, Joker."

"Even if they can't bring her back one hundred percent, it's enough to know she's still there, somewhere. Alive. There's no way they can ever separate me from the Normandy now."

Shepard smiled. "Not in a million years."

"Stop being so serious over here, you two." Tali came up, locked arms with Shepard, and all but dragged her away.

"Hi, Commander," Traynor said. She wore a very flattering blue one-piece.

"Where's those two krogan?" Jack asked.

Shepard shrugged. "They've got a lot to deal with."

"So do the I," Tali said. She brought out a little device that suddenly blasted techno music. "But this is about having fun."

"Wrex and Grunt would probably break the beach," Garrus said. At some point or another he had come up behind her. She turned and blinked. He wore trunks that were fitted to his strange turian hips and nothing else. His hands and feet were gloved, but damn did he make them look good. This was payback for letting him think swimsuits were actual suits. And she enjoyed every minute of it. "You okay Shepard?" he asked tauntingly.

"You win," she whispered as she hugged him.

"See? It's easier when you admit I'm better."

She raised an eyebrow and was about to argue, but the others pulled her into a bunch of other conversations. After a while, Garrus sat with her under the umbrella, making smart-ass remarks to Joker all while keeping his hand on her hip to remind Vega who won that contest.

Liara and Samara showed up later that afternoon. The asari wore swimsuits that were exotic, cut out in strange places, and barely held their breasts in. Needless to say, all the guys were staring. Even Garrus, though he played it off well enough.

Joker had taken to recording their evening, saying that it was bad enough they didn't have anything but a picture to remind them of their party at her old Citadel apartment. And, you know, in case Earth went to hell because it took too long to fix the relays, it'd be nice to have proof they had some good times.

Garrus didn't know what a sand castle was, so Jack showed him. Then Shepard helped her bury him in the moat around her biotically sculpted version of the Normandy.

Then Kaidan tricked him into believing an inner tube was some sort of impressive device. His plating popped it within minutes. Everyone a good laugh out of that one. If turians really could blush, Shepard was sure he would be bright red, judging from his uncomfortable fumbling.

Liara and Samara showed the other biotics how to pay push ball. Before long, multi-color biotic orbs flew around at increasingly aggressive speeds until Jack and Samara decided to call it a draw.

Shepard finally got him in the water when Kaidan suggested they play chicken. The turian was tentatively putting one foot after another into the water faster and faster the moment her thighs rested on Kaidan's shoulders. She let the major wrap his hands around them, even if they were a little higher than she knew they needed to be.

Miranda was on Vega's shoulders, and it was a legitimate battle of skill to stay balanced whenever the genetically superior woman reached out to knock her over. Of course Miranda excelled at something as simple as chicken. She won two out of three rounds, and Shepard was sure she let her win the third out of pity.

"Mind if I step in?" Garrus asked. His every movement made it clear how much he detested being wet, or at least how strange it was to him, but Kaidan reluctantly let Shepard slide down to hold her turian boyfriend's hand.

"I hope turians don't rust," Vega yelled.

"Just don't let a wave submerge me and it'll be fine."

"Sure thing, _hermano_. You going to be able to sit on that hump without breaking your ass, Lola?"

It took some maneuvering, and more than a few failed attempts that ended up with Shepard falling face-first into the ocean, but she managed to wiggle her way onto a stable position between his fringe and his carapace. It was a bit of a cheat in the end, since she had a bit more to keep her from falling. She only lost when Liara biotically lifted her up before pushing her off. It gave her a pretty bad scrape on her side, since she hit Garrus's leg spur on the way down.

"I'm so sorry," he said, picking up and holding her close.

She laughed, though she hissed when saltwater washed over the open wound. "A little blood never hurt anything."

"Hooyah!" Vega howled. Kaidan and Jack joined in before it devolved into a splash-fest that Jack easily won by dunking them with a mini-wave.

Garrus laughed then turned back to her. "Are you sure you don't want to get back up on Kaidan's shoulders instead? They looked soft enough."

She wrapped his hands in hers. "Nice try, Vakarian, but you're not getting rid of me that easy."

"You never make it easy," he said.

"And you like it that way."

Shepard laughed and splashed Garrus for good measure before he could reply. He wasn't sure what to do until Tali came up behind him and sent another splash at him. A wave came ashore and pushed all of them with it. Tali laughed as if she were a little girl and rolled with the wave each time. Garrus figured out the joy of picking Shepard up and throwing her into deeper waters, letting the ocean push her back towards him before repeating the process.

Joker got it all on the vid.

Tali helped Vega make the dextro food for her and Garrus while he cooked dinner on an open fire. The sky became a beautiful orange. They brought out a few more towels, and everyone collapsed into mumbling piles of conversation while they ate. Garrus and Shepard shared a towel. Liara was on one side, Kaidan on the other.

Joker was still under his umbrella, staring into the ocean. She wondered if he was thinking about what EDI would say about all these extremely organic moments. Part of her hoped EDI would be able to actually tell her, once they fixed her and let her watch the vids of today. Nah, she'd throw another beach party just for her.

"You look beautiful, Shepard," Garrus mumbled, looking at her through half-open eyes. He was laying on his stomach, legs in the air, head resting on his arms. If it hurt for his crest to press into the sand, he didn't mention it.

"Indeed," Liara smiled at her, "it's good to see you happy. We've been through so much. I was worried for you."

"I'm fine."

"Somehow I don't believe you." She chuckled lovingly. "But you will be. You have us." She looked at Garrus as she said that. "And we will never leave you."

"Not unless you decide to fight another Reaper head-on without us," Garrus added in wryly.

"All you have to say is 'thank you, Shepard.'" She mimicked his voice, or tried to.

He laughed. "I should go," he said in a mock-Shepard way.

"Come on, you can calibrate your guns later."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Of course."

"There are others here, you know," Kaidan said.

A few people laughed around them.

They finished dinner in the near-dark, told stories about Saren, the Collectors, the Reapers. The funny moments and embarrassing ones, even some serious ones. They all took their turn. They'd been through so much, survived despite the odds. Shepard was damn near unkillable as far as they were concerned, but she felt the weight of each comeback more and more. And she knew if they got into something serious again that she wouldn't make it out. It was like when a dog knew to leave when its time had come. She just hoped that day took its time before showing up. As far as she was concerned, she'd earned some happy memories.

No one wanted to get up and leave, but the house wouldn't hold all of them, so most of them reluctantly said their goodbyes.

Jack gave Shepard a good hug and told Garrus to be good to her in bed. Garrus made that a promise he intended to keep. Vega gave her a kiss on the lips for two seconds before Miranda dragged him away after giving Shepard a long hug. Garrus didn't mind. She was his, and he knew it. Vega's flirting would have to go a lot further than that to intimidate him. Besides, it was a terrible kiss.

Liara, Kaidan, Joker, and Tali stayed. Her original crew, her oldest friends. They talked and drank for a while. Liara had to excuse herself around midnight. Acting Councilor duties would be hell the next day if she didn't. Tali was drunk. Kaidan and Joker took turns pouring turian brandy into her snorkel, and she was giggling for no reason the rest of the night and hugging on Garrus, who wasn't sure whether to make her stop drinking or encourage her to do dumber things so he could remind her of her silliness later down the line, when she was hungover in a suit.

Eventually Kaidan helped Tali into his car. She had admiral duties in the morning and would regret being late. It was his job as the second human Spectre to make sure the quarians didn't jump to any conclusions if the admiral responsible for human relations went missing. Joker went with them.

"What a day," Garrus said. "Let's repeat the swimming portion of it tomorrow. It wasn't half bad."

She laughed. "Deal."

In a seemingly random change of mood, he gathered her up tenderly and cupped her face with his gloved hands, resting his forehead against hers. "It was good to see you so happy."

She wrapped her hand around one of his. "I love you."

"I will always love you, Shepard."

"Good. Now let's go to bed. I'm exhausted." She tugged him towards the stairs, and he wearily followed. But they were both content and happy, the happiest she could remember being in a long time. Joker had left the vids on the living room table, and she smiled at them, promising to have them over more often and make more memories.

Her life, her crew, being with Garrus. Hell, being alive. She wouldn't give it up for anything, and was grateful for the third chance.


End file.
